Mohammad awards Zayed energy prize to Bangladeshi pioneer

Abu Dhabi: Bangladesh's Dipal Chandra Barua late on Monday became the first recipient of the annual $1.5 million Zayed Future Energy Prize for his efforts to enable two million rural poor to light up their homes in Bangladesh by means of solar energy.

Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, bestowed the award during a ceremony at the second edition of the World Future Energy Summit.

Barua's organisation, Grameen Shakti, has installed more than 200,000 solar photovoltaic systems to enable poor people to purchase solar energy systems.

"I want to use the prize money to train solar technicians, award scholarships and provide seed money to entrepreneurs to start solar businesses," Barua told Gulf News shortly after receiving the award.

Under Barua's leadership, Grameen Shakti has developed several other innovative initiatives, including a biogas technology that converts cow and poultry waste into gas for cooking, lighting and fertiliser. Grameen Shakti has installed around 6,000 biogas plants and plans to construct 500,000 more by 2012.

Grameen Shakti has also trained rural women to be solar technicians, thus creating green jobs.

"My mission is to create more green jobs in my country," Barua said.

"I consider myself a global ambassador of the prize, and would like to carry forward the message of environmental sensitivity that is being championed by the leadership of Abu Dhabi," he added.

Shaikh Mohammad also recognised the efforts of Dr Martin Green from Australia, who was declared Zayed Future Energy Prize finalist by the jury.

Dr Green was awarded $350,000 for his groundbreaking research in photovoltaic technology that will result in increased efficiencies and would help bring solar energy closer to grid parity.

The Zayed Future Energy Prize was introduced in January 2008 at the inaugural World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi to honour the legacy of environmental stewardship of the UAE's late ruler and founding father, Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Asked why there was no second finalist, when the original plan was to award two finalists and one winner, nobel laureate Dr R.K. Pachauri, chairman of the jury for the Zayed Future Energy Prize told Gulf News: "There were multiple criteria for selection and we wanted to send out a strong statement that the quality of work was important."